Publishing Loader Capacity Numbers That Far Exceed The Capacity Of The Axles

[4570Man]

I look at the light rear as a good safety factor myself.

Maybe safer for the front axel since it can’t be used to it’s full potential. Definitely not safer for the operator.

 

[ruffdog]

Since I rarely have the occasion to haul weights in my bucket, I would like to know what a bucket full of dirt, sand, gravel, and firewood weighs. Those are the things I haul in my bucket. It is some information worth considering.

I didn't watch the video all the way, was there any mention of whether the hydraulics would lift that much? I always assumed (yeah, I know) that the hydraulic relief valves would keep me from overloading and damaging my tractor.

Doug in SW IA

My 68" general purpose bucket on the Toolcat will hold 13.3 cuft ISO heaped and 9.8 cuft ISO struck. That would be about 1354 lbs heaped and 9976 lbs struck for dry sand @ 101.8 lbs per cuft.

 

[MossRoad]

Hey 50 you probably shouldn't apply for a loader position at this place then

That's exactly how I operate my little PT425. I'll never exceed the front axle capacity (actually wheel motors), because it'll tip on it's nose before it'll break.

Adding ballast to the rear to keep it from tipping forward could cause damage on an articulated machine. Better to let it tip forward than break the center joints by over-ballasting it.

 

[turbo36]

Yes, stability is often overlooked by new owners focused on engine Hp numbers and loader lift ratings without regard to overall stability on flat surfaces, ignoring the fact that they use them on less than perfect surfaces.

In my case, I take my loader bucket full of whatever to just high enough off the ground to clear the ground so my Cg is as low as possible. I have had to slam the bucket down to prevent a rollover once. The road I was on was crowned and the load shifted to one side and I was on 3-wheels before I knew what happened. Things like this go sideways extremely quickly and had I not slammed the loader joystick quickly to the ground with hydraulic pressure to hold the tractor, it could have been tragic.

It drives me crazy when I see someone lift the load above the hood so they can see where they’re going! An accident just waiting to happen in my opinion.

 

[Sid Post]

It drives me crazy when I see someone lift the load above the hood so they can see where they’re going! An accident just waiting to happen in my opinion.

ABSOLUTELY!

I don't do that even when the bucket is empty! On a narrow tractor with not much weight in the rear, that is a good way for the tractor to end up on its side on flat ground and is almost guaranteed to lay it over on heavily sloped land.

Tractor stability rules! Darwin award winners prove this over and over.

 

[Sid Post]

Yeah, that's why I spec'd "dry/loose" for dirt. Gravel won't hold much water, but sand is a toss-up.

I have moved wet sand and silage. Both are much heavier than you would expect.

Same with some round bales. Is it 1300lbs or 2300lbs? Is it even more?

 

[5030]

It drives me crazy when I see someone lift the load above the hood so they can see where they’re going! An accident just waiting to happen in my opinion.

Don't bother me at all. I chalk that up to stupid and move on.

 

[CobyRupert]

One thing to keep in mind, loaded rear tires don’t help with the weight on the front axle. They do add to stability though.

My 2025r calls for loaded rear tires and something like 700 pounds of rear ballast. I probably have about 500 pounds in my ballast box plus rimguard in the tires. The bare tractor is something around 1900 pounds but by the time you add a loader, rimguard and ballast it’s around 3000 pounds.

Looking at the specs for my axle capacities is about 3800 pounds combined. I can lift around 800 pounds in the FEL but not to full height. That puts me right at those axle capacities.

Loaded rear tires increase the payload the loader can lift before the rear tires lift off the ground. This can increase the weight that the front axle will experience. It’s an increase in payload and tractor weight that is now balanced on the front axle.

Same for a ballast box located behind the rear axle. It can increase the amount weight balanced on the front axle. It can also decrease the weight on the front axle.

 

[dodge man]

Loaded rear tires increase the payload the loader can lift before the rear tires lift off the ground. This can increase the weight that the front axle will experience. It’s an increase in payload and tractor weight that is now balanced on the front axle.

Same for a ballast box located behind the rear axle. It can increase the amount weight balanced on the front axle. It can also decrease the weight on the front axle.

It’s kind of hard to understand the physics behind it but loaded rear tires do nothing to take the load off the front axle. If the rear tires come off the ground then the front axle becomes the pivot but the loaded tires than help the tractor from nose diving. A ballast box or other three point actually takes weight off the front axle.

 

[WinterDeere]

A ballast box or other three point actually takes weight off the front axle.

Yes, it takes static load off the front axle. But by allowing you to lift more, it can also create situations where you apply higher dynamic loads to the front axle, which I guess is what Coby was trying to say.

If that's hard to follow, imagine that you can lift 500 lb. stationary without a ballast box, but 1000 lb. with the ballast box mounted. Now drive the tractor around over bumpy terrain, and you'll find there are situations in which a bump or dip in the terrain permits that 1000 lb. load to apply more momentary force to the front axle than the 500 lb. would, even without ballast.

I suspect the published axle capacities are static loads, leaving huge margin for these dynamic loads. This causes the math to shake out in a way that leaves the apparent axle capacity below that of even an empty loader bucket (in at least one case demonstrated). As noted, axles aren't snapping as a result of these static loads, but dynamic loads can be 2x to 8x higher, depending on speed and terrain.